{"id":9678,"date":"2015-10-05T00:00:35","date_gmt":"2015-10-05T00:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mindfuladmin.wpengine.com\/?p=9678"},"modified":"2026-04-01T03:53:06","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T03:53:06","slug":"be-kind-to-yourself-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\/","title":"Be Kind to Yourself\u2014Right Now","content":{"rendered":"\n<p>People often find some difficulty in caring for themselves, in receiving love, in believing they deserve to be happy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Imagine for a moment the amount of energy you expend brooding over the future, ruminating about the past, comparing yourself to others, judging yourself, worrying about what might happen next. That is a huge amount of energy. Now imagine all of that energy gathered in and returned to you. Underlying our usual patterns of self-preoccupation, stinging self-judgment, and fear is the universal, innate potential for love and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-meditation-for-resting-in-awareness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">awareness<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Loving-kindness meditations point us back to a place within, where we can cultivate love and help it flourish. Developing care toward ourselves is the first objective, the foundation for later being able to include others in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/loving-kindness-meditation-makes-better-human\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sphere of kindness<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to Do a Loving-Kindness Meditation<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"layout- align\"><article class=\"podcast js-podcast-player podcast--wrap\">\n\t<button class=\"podcast__playpause js-podcast-playpause\">&nbsp;<\/button>\n\n\t<div class=\"podcast__content\">\n\t\t<h3 class=\"podcast__heading\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tBe Kind to Yourself\u2014Right Now\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"podcast__seekwrap\">\n\t\t\t<input type=\"range\" class=\"podcast__seek js-podcast-seek\" value=\"0\" max=\"189\">\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t<ul class=\"podcast__meta\">\n\t\t\t<li class=\"podcast__duration js-podcast-duration\">3:09<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t<audio preload=\"none\" class=\"js-podcast-audio\">\n\t\t\t<source src=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/mindfulorg\/Loving-Kindness_Meditation_from_Sharon_Salzberg.wav\">\n\t\t<\/audio>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>This loving-kindness practice involves silently repeating phrases that offer good qualities to oneself and to others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>You can start by taking delight in your own goodness<\/strong>\u2014calling to mind things you have done out of good-heartedness, and rejoicing in those memories to celebrate the potential for goodness we all share.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Silently recite phrases that reflect what we wish most deeply for ourselves<\/strong> in an enduring way. Traditional phrases are:<br>\u2022 May I live in safety.<br>\u2022 May I have mental happiness (peace, joy).<br>\u2022 May I have physical happiness (health, freedom from pain).<br>\u2022 May I live with ease.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Repeat the phrases with enough space and silence between<\/strong> so they fall into a rhythm that is pleasing to you. Direct your attention to one phrase at a time.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Each time you notice your attention has wandered, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/its-not-mindfulness-without-kindness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">be kind to yourself<\/a><\/strong> and let go of the distraction. Come back to repeating the phrases without judging or disparaging yourself.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>After some time, visualize yourself in the center of a circle composed of those who have been kind to you<\/strong>, or have inspired you because of their love. Perhaps you\u2019ve met them, or read about them; perhaps they live now, or have existed historically or even mythically. That is the circle. As you visualize yourself in the center of it, experience yourself as the recipient of their love and attention. Keep gently repeating the phrases of loving kindness for yourself.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>To close the session, let go of the visualization, and simply keep repeating the phrases for a few more minutes.<\/strong> Each time you do so, you are transforming your old, hurtful relationship to yourself, and are moving forward, sustained by the force of kindness.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">This article also appeared in the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mindful-magazine.myshopify.com\/collections\/mindful-back-issues\/products\/june-2015\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">June 2015 issue of <em>Mindful<\/em><\/a> magazine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-mindful-section-header heading heading--section heading--left has-black-text\"><span>read more<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<article class=\"posts posts--horizontal posts--large \">\n\t<div class=\"grid-noBottom\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col-4\">\n\t\t\t<header class=\"posts__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-practice-to-welcome-gratitude-with-sharon-salzberg\/\" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"timberpost\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/A-Practice-to-Welcome-Gratitude-with-Sharon-Salzberg-e1598019055195.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/A-Practice-to-Welcome-Gratitude-with-Sharon-Salzberg-e1598019055195.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/A-Practice-to-Welcome-Gratitude-with-Sharon-Salzberg-e1598019055195-300x197.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/A-Practice-to-Welcome-Gratitude-with-Sharon-Salzberg-e1598019055195-1024x673.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/A-Practice-to-Welcome-Gratitude-with-Sharon-Salzberg-e1598019055195-768x505.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/A-Practice-to-Welcome-Gratitude-with-Sharon-Salzberg-e1598019055195-1536x1010.jpg 1536w\" alt=\"A Practice to Welcome Gratitude with Sharon Salzberg_Two hands holding a red heart\" width=\"267\" height=\"200\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__badge\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__badge__label\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGuided Meditations\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/header>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"col-8\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h6 class=\"posts__heading\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-practice-to-welcome-gratitude-with-sharon-salzberg\/\" >A Practice to Welcome Gratitude with Sharon Salzberg<\/a>&nbsp;\t\t\t\t<\/h6>\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"posts__excerpt\">\n\t\t\t\t\tThis practice, from Sharon Salzberg\u2019s book Real Change, opens a doorway in your heart to gratitude and receiving happiness.\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-practice-to-welcome-gratitude-with-sharon-salzberg\/\" class=\"posts__readmore\" ><span>Read More<\/span>&nbsp;<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/wp-content\/themes\/mindful\/assets\/img\/arrow-right.svg\" class=\"icon icon-arrow-right\" alt=\"\"><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"posts__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"posts__author\">Sharon Salzberg<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"posts__date\">August 21, 2020<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"posts posts--horizontal posts--large \">\n\t<div class=\"grid-noBottom\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col-4\">\n\t\t\t<header class=\"posts__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/the-gift-of-loving-kindness\/\" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"timberpost\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/The-Gift-of-Loving-Kindness.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/The-Gift-of-Loving-Kindness.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/The-Gift-of-Loving-Kindness-300x188.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/The-Gift-of-Loving-Kindness-1024x640.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/The-Gift-of-Loving-Kindness-768x480.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/The-Gift-of-Loving-Kindness-1536x960.jpg 1536w\" alt=\"the gift of Loving-Kindness_Illustration of two people watering a plant with a heart flower\" width=\"267\" height=\"200\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__badge\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__badge__label\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLoving-Kindness &amp; Compassion\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/header>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"col-8\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h6 class=\"posts__heading\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/the-gift-of-loving-kindness\/\" >The Gift of Loving-Kindness<\/a>&nbsp;\t\t\t\t<\/h6>\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"posts__excerpt\">\n\t\t\t\t\tWorld-renowned meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg reveals that we don\u2019t have to make anything happen while practicing loving-kindness. With time, you\u2019ll notice its benefits.\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/the-gift-of-loving-kindness\/\" class=\"posts__readmore\" ><span>Read More<\/span>&nbsp;<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/wp-content\/themes\/mindful\/assets\/img\/arrow-right.svg\" class=\"icon icon-arrow-right\" alt=\"\"><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"posts__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"posts__author\">Sharon Salzberg<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"posts__date\">July 21, 2020<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"posts posts--horizontal posts--large \">\n\t<div class=\"grid-noBottom\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col-4\">\n\t\t\t<header class=\"posts__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-guided-meditation-for-gathering-your-energy\/\" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"timberpost\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_573477735.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_573477735.png 1920w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_573477735-300x188.png 300w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_573477735-1024x640.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_573477735-768x480.png 768w, https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/AdobeStock_573477735-1536x960.png 1536w\" alt=\"A Guided meditation for Gathering Your Attention\" width=\"267\" height=\"200\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__badge\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__badge__label\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBreathing Meditations\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/header>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"col-8\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"posts__body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h6 class=\"posts__heading\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-guided-meditation-for-gathering-your-energy\/\" >A Guided Meditation for Gathering Your Energy<\/a>&nbsp;\t\t\t\t<\/h6>\n\t\t\t\t<p class=\"posts__excerpt\">\n\t\t\t\t\tSharon Salzberg shares this meditation for energy and helping to strengthen concentration so you can focus with more ease.\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/a-guided-meditation-for-gathering-your-energy\/\" class=\"posts__readmore\" ><span>Read More<\/span>&nbsp;<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/wp-content\/themes\/mindful\/assets\/img\/arrow-right.svg\" class=\"icon icon-arrow-right\" alt=\"\"><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"posts__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"posts__author\">Sharon Salzberg<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"posts__date\">April 27, 2024<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To be kind to others, you need to start with yourself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":9680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13484,17598],"tags":[17107,17274],"departments":[],"issues":[1238],"coauthors":[771],"class_list":["post-9678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-compassion","category-meditation-practices","tag-mental-health","tag-premium","issues-06-2015"],"acf":[],"site_id":1,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.5 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Be Kind to Yourself\u2014Right Now - Mindful<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how to be kind to yourself right now with loving-kindness meditations. Cultivate love and overcome fear.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Be Kind to Yourself\u2014Right Now\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"To be kind to others, you need to start with yourself.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mindful\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mindfulorg\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-10-05T00:00:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-01T03:53:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.mindful.org\/content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/lovingkindness_feature.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"490\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"350\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sharon Salzberg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@MindfulOnline\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@MindfulOnline\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sharon Salzberg\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Sharon Salzberg\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c7a867769049e201f6300c5d7e5222ba\"},\"headline\":\"Be Kind to Yourself\u2014Right Now\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-10-05T00:00:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-01T03:53:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":431,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/06\\\/lovingkindness_feature.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Mental Health\",\"premium\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Loving-Kindness &amp; Compassion\",\"Meditation Practices\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/\",\"name\":\"Be Kind to Yourself\u2014Right Now - Mindful\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/be-kind-to-yourself-right-now\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mindful.org\\\/content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/06\\\/lovingkindness_feature.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-10-05T00:00:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-01T03:53:06+00:00\",\"description\":\"Learn how to be kind to yourself right now with loving-kindness meditations. 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